Do I need an alignment after installing lowering springs or coilovers?

Yes. This is one of the few genuinely non-negotiable items in suspension work, and skipping it is expensive rather than merely untidy. Lowering a car changes its suspension geometry. As the suspension compresses, the control arms move through their arc, and the wheels gain negative camber - they tilt inward at the top. Toe settings shift at the same time. This is not a side effect of doing the job badly; it is what happens geometrically when you reduce ride height, and it happens whether you fit $250 springs or $2,000 coilovers. The consequences of ignoring it are concrete. Excess negative camber wears the inner shoulder of the tire while the rest of the tread looks fine, and you can destroy an otherwise healthy set of tires in a few thousand miles. Toe being out is worse - incorrect toe scrubs tread away quickly and makes the car feel nervous or vague depending on which direction it is out. A set of tires costs considerably more than an alignment. That is the entire argument. **Wait for the suspension to settle before aligning.** New springs and coilovers take time to reach their final ride height, typically a few hundred miles of normal driving as everything beds in. An alignment performed the same afternoon the parts went on will be measuring a car that is about to change. Drive it for a week or two, then align. **Have realistic expectations about what is adjustable.** On a lowered VB you may find that camber has moved beyond what the factory adjustment range can correct, particularly at the rear. At that point you are looking at camber bolts or adjustable rear control arms to bring it back into specification. Budget for that possibility if you are going for a significant drop rather than a mild one. **Ask for a printout and specify your intent.** A good alignment shop will ask whether you want a comfort-biased or performance-biased setup. Tell them the car is lowered, tell them how you drive it, and keep the before-and-after sheet. It is useful the next time anything changes. The same applies to any change in ride height, wheel offset or tire size, not just lowering. And if the car has been aligned and still pulls or wears unevenly, that is a signal to look for a bent component or worn bushing rather than to keep re-aligning it.